Gasp! Gorgeous, delicate, GIGANTIC flowers… made entirely of paper! PAPER. This is the stunning work of San Francisco based architect/artist Tiffanie Turner… those happen to be her dress-covered legs in the first photo of the post, just to give you a sense of scale. Yep, these botanical beauties all range between 23″ to 36″ in diameter… a light pink dahlia that is three feet across? Yes. I am going to need that. All of these insanely amazing flowers are part of a show called “Heads” that is currently showing at Rare Device in San Francisco. The show is up until May 28th, so take a break from working in your real garden and go visit this ridiculously gorgeous paper garden… no weeding necessary! [Opening reception: May 9th from 6 – 8pm]

{ps. Each of these crazy paper blooms can take Tiffanie anywhere between 35 – 80 hours to complete… gasp! Again.}

*Top-most photo taken by Sarah Deragon, all other images were shot by Tiffanie.

Oh, yes! I want to swing on those swings, under those lights, surrounded by bizarre, large-scale, carousel-inspired creatures! I mentioned a pre-release print from this show a few weeks ago, but now Joyride, a new solo exhibition by Minneapolis based artist Jennifer Davis is open for business! I absolutely love every piece in this show, and I’m particularly excited about this because almost two years ago, I was sitting on a warm patio in Minneapolis having a post GIRL CRUSH dinner with Jennifer, and she told me that she was waiting to find out about a grant… a grant that would allow her to do a road trip to a bunch of US cities, that were famous for their old carousels, so that she could gather inspiration/source materials to do a huge, whimsical, solo show. A few days after I left, she sent me an email… yep, she got the grant ♥

* This show will be up at Public Functionary, in Minneapolis, until April 25th. That means you can swing on swings this weekend if you want to… Go!

A long time ago I minored in Art History. I had a thing for impressionism… do you see where this is going? I totally thought these were grainy photos when I first saw them, but on closer inspection I realized that these Japanese fashionistas, and those Korean school kids playing in the waves were made entirely of small dabs of paint. Stunning! They are the work of two Berlin based artists {who happen to be married} known as Römer + Römer. Torsten and Nina Römer work together to create these gorgeous, HUGE {78″x105″ in some cases!} modern-day impressionistic work. Yep, I have a thing for these too.

{They currently have a show up at Freight & Volume in New York – it runs until April 26, 2014}

POW! Stunning, large-scale, air brushed PAINTINGS of fireworks! Yes. Paintings. This is the work of LA based artist Samantha Fields. Now, here’s where my problem comes in… I can’t decide which I love more… her magical fireworks, or her rainy/misty headlights at night:

See? How can I pick a favorite? I just can’t. Here is a description of this body of work, and a fascinating explanation of her technique:

In this body of work, Fields immortalizes points in time that are relished, lost and longed for in a single instant—what the artist calls “halcyon moments.” Her paintings are documents of these otherwise ephemeral occurrences: smoke lingering in the sky after a firework has faded, the blur of colored city lights reflected on wet pavement, or transient shadows shifting across a nighttime landscape.

…

What a camera can record in a split second takes longer to translate into painting, complicating our expectations of photographs as instantaneous replications of an observed reality. Fields uses an airbrush to apply hundreds of thinly misted layers of acrylic paint to canvas or paper, creating rich, almost incandescent, surfaces. By focusing on representations of memory, enigmatic and unfixed, Fields expressively captures the energy and emotion of a fleeting moment.

{Samantha currently has a show at Traywick Contemporary in Berkeley, CA. It will be up until May 25th, 2014. You should go.}

Oooh… now, I know that’s how I actually start some posts, but this series by Sydney based artist Todd Robinson is actually titled “Oooh”. Yep. Colorful, squishy {yet solid?}, lazy-looking balloons made of hydrocal, polyester filler, and paint, in a series titled Oooh… I really can’t ask for much more.

*All of these images are from a show that was up last September at Galerie pompom in Sydney. Photos by Brett East.

Oh, Jennifer Davis. I have written about her so many times, she was the host artist for GIRL CRUSH Minneapolis, and she’s one of the artists in CREATIVE BLOCK. And, if all of those things weren’t enough, now she’s got an amazingly beautiful new show, Joyride, that opens tomorrow night at Public Functionary{7pm- midnight} in Minneapolis. Huge 4’x4′ pieces all inspired by vintage carousels… gorgeous! Jennifer traveled all over the US to gather images & inspiration for this body of work, and tomorrow night it will finally be revealed… well, except that I’m going to let one piece leak today! Yep, this gorgeous horse print will go on sale tomorrow at noon (CST). Here’s the info:

Edition of 50 // 15 available online 12pm CST on Saturday, March 22nd, remainder released at the opening (in person purchase only 7pm-Midnight). Any remaining prints will be released online Sunday morning 10am CST. Title: Horses
Signed and numbered by the artist on the back.
Pigment Print on Cotton Rag Paper
20 x20 image size on 24×24 paper
Unframed– $175
Framed– $400
Framed to conservation standards.
1/2 inch spacer between art and glass
Total framed size 26×26

And here’s the link to purchase, but remember, you can’t buy until Saturday at high noon! NEIGH!!!! {that was meant to be a horse sound… hm.}

I wrote about the lovely, vintage-looking work of American painter Jessica Brilli a couple of years ago. It was all old-school cameras and classic typewriters in that post, today however… it’s about clocks. And radios. And clock-radios. Love, love, love! {And oh, her palettes… I cannot get over her palettes!}

Um, I need that giant golden triangle hovering over that vintage lake. Not want… NEEEEEEED! Vintage landscapes, big cut-away gold shapes, and a few old cars?! Yep, this work, by Canadian artist Amy Alice Thompson, has everything I love. Each piece is fantastic, but I love the shots that show the work on the walls together. What a beautiful grouping… like a camping trip from the 70s that has been dropped into the future… a geometric, golden future! Love.

Ok, now THAT is a lot of neon! As I’m sure you’re quite aware, I do love a little pop of neon here and there, so when I found out about this show that is COMPLETELY neon, well, I was totally on board. There are sooooo many amazing artists in this show, New Neon, that is currently hanging at Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek, California {between San Francisco and Sacramento}. I’ve only shown a fraction of the artists involved… and thankfully Sandra Fettingis, the first artist featured at the top of this post, took a few instagrams of the space so I’ve included those too. I would love to spend a little time in this ridiculously neon space, wouldn’t you? The show is up until February 23rd, so pop by if you can.

Oh boy. I reallllly love these new paintings by Vancouver based artist Rebecca Chaperon. I just wrote about her in July, and was a little obsessed with her dark, moody color palette… and then I saw these! She told me that she had a really tough summer playing around with this new palette {it truly is such a huge departure from her regular work} but I think she’s got the hang of it now! I’ve said this before, but one thing I admire so much is when an artist pushes past their comfort zone, yet the work is still recognizable as their own… well, that’s what Rebecca has done with these pink beauties! {ps. they’re hanging at “Make Vancouver” from Dec 13- Jan 15 2013 – 257 East 7th Ave}